Perfetto - System profiling, app tracing and trace analysis

Perfetto is a production-grade, open-source stack for performance instrumentation and trace analysis, designed for high-complexity environments like Android, Linux, and Chrome platforms. It provides unparalleled capabilities for system-wide and application-level tracing, offering deep insights into performance bottlenecks.

See https://perfetto.dev/docs or the /docs/ directory for documentation.

Features

• System-Level Tracing: Capture and analyze performance metrics across Android, Linux, and Chrome.
• Heap Profiling: Supports native and Java heap profiling for precise memory management insights.
• SQL-Based Trace Analysis: Leverage SQL queries to analyze multi-GB traces with precision.
• Advanced Visualization: Web-based UI for exploring and visualizing traces at scale.
• Cross-Platform Support: Compatible with Android, Linux, Chrome, and more.
• Customizable Instrumentation: Extendable APIs for integrating with custom workflows.

Tech Stack

• Languages: C++, Java
• Platforms: Android, Linux, Chrome
• Key Tools: SQL Analysis Engine, Web-Based UI, Heap Profilers
• Utilities: Trace Event APIs, Data Sources for Custom Events

Project Structure

• src/: Core implementation files.
• ui/: Frontend code for web-based trace visualization.
• docs/: Detailed documentation and guides.
• tools/: Command-line utilities for trace recording and processing.

Development Setup

Prerequisites

• A Linux or macOS environment
• Python 3.x
• A supported version of Android SDK (if using Android)

Steps to Setup Locally

1. Clone the repository:

   git clone https://github.com/doronkabaso/perfetto.git
   cd perfetto

2. Install dependencies:

   tools/install-build-deps

3. Build the project:

   tools/ninja -C out/debug

4. Run tests:

   tools/ninja -C out/debug run_tests

5. Launch the trace viewer:

   tools/traceconv <trace_file>

Deployment

Perfetto can be integrated into custom workflows for performance-critical environments. For deployment details, refer to the official documentation.

Complexity Highlight

Perfetto’s ability to handle multi-GB traces, integrate SQL-based analysis, and offer platform-agnostic tracing solutions makes it indispensable for performance engineers. Its use in Android, Linux, and Chrome demonstrates its reliability and scalability in diverse, complex environments.

Feedback

For suggestions or feedback, please reach out via GitHub Issues.

Lessons Learned

Perfetto showcases how performance instrumentation can be scaled to handle the demands of modern platforms. Its modular architecture, extensible APIs, and deep integration with system-level components exemplify state-of-the-art tracing tools.